Major plans to redevelop Twickenham Riverside have been withdrawn by the new administration of Richmond Council.

Proposals to transform a former swimming pool site into 39 apartments with shops, parking spaces and a public square were submitted and approved by the Conservatives, who ran the council until the May elections.

New Liberal Democrat leader of the council Gareth Roberts said the site was “one of the key battlegrounds” of the campaign.

He added: “We cannot overestimate the importance of this site, and that proposals should respond to the needs of the community as much as possible and not just the needs of the council.”